DAVIE, FLA. (WSVN) - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis addressed topics like insurance premiums and Broward County’s budget during a stop at Broward College in Davie, one day before state lawmakers are set to gather for a new legislative session.
During Monday’s press conference, the governor also touched on the CFP National Championship which will pit the Miami Hurricanes against the Indiana Hoosiers at Hard Rock Stadium, Jan. 19.
The main focus of DeSantis’ press conference was on insurance premiums for both homeowners and drivers across Florida. He talked about how the reforms that his administration has put into place are finally starting to show results.
The governor said that statewide insurance rates for homeowners should start to come down by around 13%. He said those with Citizens Property Insurance should especially notice a decline in insurance rates.
DeSantis said he’s looking forward to a special session that would address state property taxes.
He also mentioned Broward County. During the question-and-answer portion, a reporter asked him if it was time for an outside body to investigate the school district’s budget.
To which DeSantis replied: “I think you did a good job of the laundry list of failures in the Broward School District. Honestly, it’s been a disaster. Let’s just be honest, it’s been a disaster in many different ways. It is really run more to benefit the entrenched interests, particularly the school unions, rather than the parents and the students.”
During his answer, the governor also suggested he’ll be asking the state’s education commissioner about placing the district in a receivership.
“I think the question would be for our education commissioner, what authorities are there, under current law, or them to go in and could do, would do, or does the legislature need to do things to be able to authorize…Maybe thrust things, some of these entities, into a receivership, maybe the best way going forward. I think you could work things out pretty quickly, but it’s been really tough.”
But Broward school board chair Sarah Leonardi, responding to the governor, says the school board has changed.
“I think the governor was referring to the old Broward schools. We are a back-to-back A-rated school district by the state’s own metrics. We have no D or F schools for the first time ever. We are a high performing school district as designated by the state,” she said.
Leonardi said the school board invites DeSantis and his policy team to work with them. She added there has not been any formal discussions with the state’s educational department about putting the district in a receivership.
“The state clearly outlines some very strict guidelines around receivership. We have not met those metrics yet. I invite the governor and his team with the expertise to work collaboratively with us,” she said.
Additionally, on another topic, DeSantis said he plans to expand on the topic of AI more during the session on Tuesday, saying that it’s the state’s job to make sure that any new companies or technologies do not take over and take people’s jobs.
“We do have a responsibility to make sure that the technology that’s developed is ethical, that it reinforces our values as both Floridians and Americans, and certainly, you know, we shouldn’t be trying to greenlight anything that’s going to displace human beings from being kind of the central actors in America’s republican experiment,” DeSantis said.
Regarding the CFP National Championship, the governor said he is looking forward to the Hurricanes finally playing in the playoffs, saying that the championship coming to the state, especially here in South Florida, is a positive development for the whole state.
7News will continue to cover Florida’s legislative session. Check back on WSVN.com and 7News for more details.
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